Prevent: the role of local councillors

The aim of the national Prevent strategy is to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism and violent extremism. It is concerned with tackling the radicalisation of individuals in the UK and elsewhere which sustains the international terrorist threat. This briefing considers the role that councillors can play in Prevent.

Overview

Terrorist groups which pose a threat to our security seek to radicalise and recruit people to their cause. Prevent is a vital part of the government’s counter-terrorism strategy to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism.

Prevent is the first of four strands within the government’s counter-terrorism strategy. The other three strands are: Pursue: to stop terrorist attacks, Protect: to strengthen our protection against terrorist attack and Prepare: where an attack cannot be stopped, to mitigate its impact.

Prevent addresses all forms of terrorism, including far right extremism. It is conducted with local authorities, the police, a wide range of government departments, with community organisations and with many countries overseas.

The government considers the most serious terrorist threat is currently from Al Qa’ida, its affiliates and like-minded organisations. At the time of writing, the current threat level is ‘substantial’, which means a terrorist attack is a strong possibility.

The Prevent strategy is guided by a number of key principles. These are that:

- Prevent is an integral part of the government’s counter-terrorism strategy, CONTEST.

- Prevent will address all forms of terrorism, however, work will be targeted against those forms of terrorism that pose the greatest risk to our national security. Currently, the greatest threat comes from Al Qa’ida, its affiliates and like-minded groups.

- Prevent will tackle non-violent extremism where it creates an environment conducive to terrorism and popularises ideas that are espoused by terrorist groups.

- Public money will not be provided to extremist organisations who do not support the values of democracy, human rights, the rule of law and mutual respect and tolerance of different faith groups. Objectives of the Prevent strategy The new Prevent programme was updated in 2011 and has three objectives. It seeks to:

- challenge the ideology that supports terrorism and those who promote it: respond to the ideological challenge of terrorism and the threat we face from those who promote it

- protect vulnerable people: prevent people from being drawn into terrorism and ensure that they are given appropriate advice and support; and,

- support sectors and institutions where there are risks of radicalisation: work with a wide range of sectors and institutions (including education, faith, health and criminal justice) where there are risks of radicalisation which we need to address.

Counter-Terrorism Local Profiles (CTLPs) In order to meet the objectives of the Prevent Strategy locally, local authorities need to be able to draw on relevant intelligence and information to ensure that they understand the local risks which Prevent is intended to address. To that end, a CTLP is a police-produced report that outlines the threat and vulnerability from terrorism-related activity within a specific area, e.g. police Basic Command Unit (BCU) / Local Policing Unit (LPU), local authority area or force. A CTLP is a strategic document and does not provide a complete assessment of activity in an area. Although the content of each individual CTLP will vary greatly, depending on the locality, the RESTRICTED CTLP with generally include:

- a crime overview
- information on community tensions
- the context of threats from a range of different sources
- reference to crowded places and/or hazardous sites
- cross-force or regional boundary issues
- national and international migration and demographics of relevance.

CTLP distribution is generally RESTRICTED; on that basis any decision on sharing the CTLP document with elected members will be made at a local level by the CTLP Owner (police BCU Commanders).

Role of the local authority Local authorities are a key driver at a local level in tackling terrorism and extremism where it creates an environment conducive to terrorism. They are central to facilitating local partnership working as well as offering a gateway to a range of service provision to support people vulnerable to radicalisation.

Local authorities may also have responsibilities for delivering CTLP recommendations and/or may possess information and data relevant in the production of CTLPs. This may include information such as Indices of Multiple Deprivation factors, Community Safety Partnership (CSP) data and health data. Examples of relevant local authority partners are:

- housing departments
- environmental health departments
- licensing departments
- local authority planning departments
- benefits and tax departments
- health departments (including mental health)
- social services (adult and children’s services)
- statutory and voluntary youth services
- arts and cultural delivery bodies
- schools, colleges and universities
- community safety and engagement officers
- council neighbourhood management officers
- integration teams. Locally, Prevent work is accountable to elected councillors. Nationally Prevent is overseen by the Prevent Oversight Board, chaired by the Home Secretary, which oversees the Prevent strategy and its local implementation.

The Home Office funds dedicated Prevent coordinators in local areas of particular importance to coordinate local delivery. From April 2013, the 18 priority areas in London are as follows (listed in alphabetical order):

- Brent
- Camden
- Ealing
- Enfield
- Greenwich
- Hackney
- Hammersmith and Fulham
- Haringey
- Islington
- Kensington and Chelsea
- Lambeth
- Lewisham
- Newham
- Redbridge
- Tower Hamlets
- Waltham Forest
- Wandsworth
- Westminster

Developing a local approach Local areas are responsible for deciding how Prevent is delivered. For example, some areas have created a group specifically focused on Prevent, while others have used existing crime reduction partnerships or another local multi-agency strategic structure.

Prevent work is typically managed locally through a Prevent Board. A local Prevent Board is usually jointly led by the local authority and the police and will includes representatives from other statutory groups and the community.

When developing a Prevent strategy, it is important that responses are designed in a manner appropriate to the local problem and context. If radicalisation is a social and political phenomenon then responses need to be tailored to the local setting. This means that projects successful in one area might not work elsewhere.

Case study: Hammersmith and Fulham, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and the City of Westminster – Empowering School Children to Resist and Refute Extremism

This project uses theatre as a catalyst to provide students the opportunity to discuss the broader context in which extremism (in all its forms) occurs.

An experienced theatre company is delivering up to 26 sessions in 13 schools and youth organisations across the boroughs of Hammersmith and Fulham, Royal Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster giving a reach of around 3,900 young people. The production prompts debate and discussion amongst 15-17 year old secondary school students about extremism and how people can be exploited by to commit acts of criminality in the name of an extremist ideology.

The production is followed by a workshop that explores the themes raised in the play and a discussion around how young people can challenge and refute extremist narratives. Teachers are provided with pre and post event worksheets to stimulate discussion within the class concerning the issues raised in the play. In addition to local delivery, there are also key elements to Prevent, relevant to local authorities but delivered regionally or nationally. These include WRAP Training and Channel.

**WRAP Training** The Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism (OSCT) continue to roll out Workshop to Raise Awareness of Prevent (WRAP) training. WRAP training is designed to raise awareness and is intended for practitioners who have little or no knowledge of the Prevent agenda, who work in communities and/or work with vulnerable individuals. As part of the training, participants:

- Gain an understanding of the Prevent agenda
- Develop their existing expertise and professional judgement to recognise individuals who may be vulnerable to radicalisation
- Gain a raised awareness of the key issues and how these can be tackled by all agencies to keep areas safe and prevent terrorist activity

**Channel** Channel is a police-coordinated, multi-agency partnership that assesses referrals of individuals at risk of being drawn into terrorism and provides them with the support they need to draw them away from engaging in terrorist-related activity. It works alongside local Prevent delivery, which includes safeguarding partnerships and crime reduction panels. Channel is modelled on other successful multi-agency risk management processes such as child protection, domestic violence and the management of high risk offenders. Funding for Channel is provided by OSCT.

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**Case study: Redbridge - Young Leaders Project** The Young Leaders project sought to provide opportunities to young people to participate and engage in wider strategies to challenge extremism and support young people who become vulnerable to radicalisation.

With the support of Children’s Services, the programme was developed to work with around 30 young people to enhance and develop their leadership skills using innovative training to give them the skills to become confident influencers and community stabilisers in Redbridge.

**Case study: Wandsworth – Prevent project for Somali Community** This project involves engagement work with the Somali community through the commissioning of a Prevent Project Worker. Events in Somalia, including the activities of Al Shabaab, have an impact on young people in London. The project will engage with 20 young Somalis.

The project aims to deliver at least one film or drama which presents a robust counter-narrative to those extremists seeking to radicalise London-based Somalis.

The Somali Prevent project worker has already delivered a number of initiatives since July 2012, including outreach work through networks in the local community and schools. Commentary

Work to stop people from becoming terrorists and respond to the ideological challenge of terrorism and aspects of extremism may seem distant to the day-to-day role of local councillors. However, successful prevention strategies will only work when underpinned by the support of councillors’ knowledge and relationships in a local area.

National government is not well-placed to conduct community-level intervention work, so there needs to be a local, partnership approach. Ward councillors, through their knowledge and relationships in a local area, can play an important role in fostering those partnerships.

In carrying out their normal roles, councillors are well placed to listen to and understand constituents’ concerns in this area, and can share their understanding of sources of community tension with the local authority.

Ward councillors could also consider using their authority and legitimacy to challenge the narratives of radicalisers and extremists and put forward positive alternatives. They can work with the wider community to condemn the activities of extremists who misrepresent local community views. Councillors can also use their established relationship with the local media to amplify positive messages about local communities.

Prevent Co-ordinators in the priority boroughs will be able to provide further advice and support.

Author: Anne-marie Pickup, principal policy and project officer (T: 020 7934 9786) Click here to send a comment or query to the author

Links: Review of Prevent strategy - Home Office Current threat level - Home Office

This member briefing has been circulated to: Portfolio holders and those members who requested policy briefings in the following category: Crime and Public Protection